What Pet Owners Need to Know About Air Duct Cleaning
Pets are part of the family. But while they bring lots of love and fun to your home, they also bring fur, dander, and odors. In this post, we’ll share how pets affect the air quality in your home and why air duct cleaning can be especially important for healthy air quality in homes with pets.
Pets and Your HVAC System
Dealing with shedding is an unavoidable part of being a pet owner, but it’s not just pet hair that you have to worry about. Another natural shedding process for dogs, cats, rodents, and other animals — even hairless ones — involves dander. Often, people mistakenly believe they are allergic to pet hair when they are actually allergic to pet dander, made up of microscopic skin cells.
The amount of dander in the air can significantly affect your air filtration system and potentially make you and your family sick. The microscopic flecks of skin can remain suspended in the air and then settle in your air ducts as your HVAC system cycles throughout the day. Over time, dust and debris build up in air duct systems during regular operation. With pet hair and dander in the home, the ductwork may acquire excessive buildup over a shorter time. Removing dander from the air not only improves indoor air quality, but HVAC efficiency.
How Pets Affect Air Quality
Aside from producing dander, pets are also a landing spot for dust and pollen. As pets go in and out of the home, they bring dirt and pollen from outside, eventually getting into the air inside your home, leaving microscopic particles in the air. Biological contaminants, including animal dander, significantly impact indoor air quality.
Air quality includes odors, which can be a sign of something amiss. Unpleasant odors can alert you to potential risks in your home. This is true for chemical or gas smells and strong pet odors. The dust, pollen, and dander released from pets wandering through your house end up in the air you breathe and circulate through your HVAC system.
Additional Cleaning Can Help
If you want to improve the air quality in your home, having your air ducts cleaned more frequently can help. Air fresheners only mask the odors you wish to hide from yourself and your guests. The first step you may try is a deep, steam cleaning of your carpets, furniture, and flooring. If a pet odor lingers, air duct cleaning may help. Air duct cleaning removes built-up pet dander, dust, and pollen and will help decrease or eliminate lingering pet odors. Although allergies are a result of dander, fur can still clog your filters and reduce HVAC efficiency.
Other benefits of having your air ducts cleaned include:
- Increased efficiency of your heating and cooling unit
- Reduces allergens
- Preventative maintenance to help your system run longer
- Mold and mildew prevention
Other Ways to Improve Air Quality After Air Duct Cleaning
Following your air duct cleaning, you can take some simple steps to keep your air cleaner until your next HVAC maintenance appointment.
- Regularly changing your air filters
- Vacuuming floors and furniture
- Regular pet grooming appointments
- Steam cleaning your carpets and flooring
Regularly replacing your air filters is crucial for your HVAC system to operate correctly. Pet hair and dander can get caught in the air filters and build up enough to block airflow through the vents. Replacing your HVAC filters on a regular basis will help your air conditioning unit function year-round and enhance your home's energy efficiency.
AdvantaClean
If you have indoor pets and want to improve your home's air quality, AdvantaClean is here to help! The AdvantaClean team has the right skills and equipment to complete the job correctly and leave your home with better air quality for you, your family, and your pets!
Contact AdvantaClean today for high-quality professional duct cleaning services. We specialize in healthy homes, including air duct cleaning services, mold removal, water damage cleanup, and other restoration and preventative services. Check out the other services we offer, and remember, we are available 24/7 for emergencies.